vvpeace

We had a wonderful 10-day visit to Paris(4 days) Venice(2 days), Florence(1 day) and Rome(2 days). This is our first Europe trip. Although our schedule was packed each day, we did enjoy every minute. Europe is so rich that we definitely will go back another time. I did the entire trip planning mainly using Rick Steves? book and this forum.

Some review of hotel and restaurants

HOTEL

Paris ? Hotel du mont blanc (72E). It is right in the latin quarter, across from Notre Dame, excellent location, busy streets full of restaurants. We had the room facing the courtyard with no street noise. Modest room, but very clean and friendly staff too.Venice - Albergo Marin (90E). It is near the train station. Nice and clean, friendly staff, good breakfast. We used the laundry facility just next door.

Florence ? B&B Peterson (62E). 10 to 15 minutes walk from train station. Once we figured out how the bus worked, we felt happier about the location. Room is large and clean, good value. We were just not very fond of the train station area.

Rome ? Hotel Italia (100E). Good room and facilities. Convenient location. Good breakfast. Front desk staff are very helpful. They sell bus tickets and make reservation for you.

RESTAURANT

Generally, Florence has the best quality and value of food of our entire trip. We had the best gelato there too. We tried Restaurant C'E' C'E' and a self-served cafeteria near Duomo (both from Rick's book). Both are very good and reasonable.

La Petite Prince de Paris ? The food was delicious. We tried fois gras, escargots, a pork and a beef dish with a bottle of wine. It is a small and cozy place on the back street in the 5e. Not touristy. Cost about 35E per person.

Alla Rivetta, Venice ? Delicious fried and grilled seafood. Spent around 28E per person (including both courses, dessert and wine)at lunch. Not too bad for venice.

Trattoria der Pallaro, Rome - dissappointed 'cause we read a lot of good reviews before the trip. The food was mediocre. We felt we could do better with 20E per person.

- to be continued

vvpeace

Paris Trip Report

Paris is the most beautiful city I've ever seen, with the nature beauty of the well-trimmed trees and the seine river and the romantic atmosphere everywhere around. Every street and corner has a story. She is never overwhelming, just being there waiting for you to discover. True, she has a lot of well-known wonders, such as the Louver, Eiffel tower, nortre dame, Champs Elysees and Arc de Triumphe, that everyone visits. But she is a lot more than that. She presents a total relaxing atmosphere, as long as you pause and feel.

Day 1: The whole flight was non-eventful with AA and we arrived earlier than schedule at 7:30 am at CDG. Took us a while to find the bus outside the terminal to go to the RER station. There were just so many different groups of people waiting outside. Later, we found the signs which were really straight-forward. We were just wondering in the wrong section. There was a line at the RER station to buy the ticket, which moved fairly fast. Locals could use credit card to buy tickets from the machine, but we couldn?t. You must have coins of about 7.5 E to buy 1 ticket. We also bought our 10-tickets (une carnet) at the same station.

My first impression of paris is that she is smaller than I imagined, with notre dame at one side and louvre well within walking distance on the other. Our hotel (hotel du mont blanc) is right the san michel metro/RER station. It located on a busy little street called Huchette, with a lot of greek and other restaurants which mainly rely on tourists for business. The room (72E) is modest but very clean. The location can't be beaten with notre dame just around the corner and 3 major RER and metro stations crossed. We had a room facing the courtyard with no street noise at night. We probably will stay there again next time, or if we can afford more, move a little deeper in the 5th arrondissement, where the street is much quieter and less touristy.

We had some trouble to buy the 3-day museum card from the metro station (sold out at every station). So we started to stroll toward louvre. We arrived at noon with few people in the museum. I've mapped all the art pieces we wanted to see for this trip from the louvre website beforehand, which came in pretty handy. At first, DH wasn't convinced that we should take some shortcuts, he wanted to go room by room (people who have been to louvre would be smiling now). He later appreciated our own route, 'cause we weren't too tired to appreciate the highlights when we got there. We focused mainly on the denon wing. I was awed by the beauty of Venus (which I didn't expect). She was just so perfect, from every angle and her expression brought her alive. No picture or video could capture the timeless beauty. We really admired the masterpieces by Ingres and David, all the vivid depict of details, the texture and the treatment of light. The large canvas pieces were amazing, you have to see it in person. Although I was a big fan of impressionists, but here at louvre, I learned it was hard to say you love one school or another, one artist was greater than another. Each artist saw the world in their own eyes and depicted it in their own way. Thanks to their diverse approaches, we got to appreciate the beauty of life in different angles. I know that I have to mention Mona Lisa. All I can say is that it is a great piece of art, however I wasn't deeply moved by her. We spent 3 to 4 hours in louvre. It was such a memorable experience for both of us. We definitely are going to go back for more at another time.

After a brief break for lunch, we went back to Ile de la Cité. We went straight in Sainte Chappelle. The stained glass windows were very beautiful (it was a clear day). But since I heard so much about it, I imagined more so I was slightly disappointed (drawback of knowledge). We then strolled over to notre dame. It was later in the day so there were less tourists. It was a little dark inside. The light went through the rose window was very beautiful. The candle lights lit up by the visitors added a touch of warmth in the sacred environment. We sat quietly there for a while, thinking of all the stories happened here. We decided to climb up the tower at another time ?cause the line was too long.

We went back to the hotel for a small nap and came out at the sunset feeling refreshed. Paris is so gorgeous at sunset. With all the tourist noise died down, we got to appreciate the beauty sip by sip. We sat down on the bench in the small park at the back of Norte dame, watching the sunset glowing on the building. Around us, people of all ages kissing and hugging everywhere. It was so romantic. We then strolled over to Ile St. Louis, very quiet and picturesque residential area. I had an ice-cream from Berthillon. It was too sweet for my taste. At 8pm, we went on a seine cruise with Vedettes du Pont Neuf. The timing couldn?t be better. We saw the city in sunset at our departure and the lights lit on when we came back. Along seine, people were picnicking, dancing or simply sitting on the quay. What a beautiful life. We finished our night eating at a small Chinese restaurant called Mirama on St-Jacques. We waited in a small queue with locals but the serving was fast. Their wanton noodle soup and roast noodle soup were delicious (judged by us native Chinese) at modest price.

Michel_Paris

Excellent wpeace! I see that you have also caught the Paris bug

ira

Thanks for sharing wp.

Any other comments on the B&B Peterson?

Nikki

Great report, eagerly awaiting the rest of it.

vvpeace

Thanks, everyone. That's a lot of encouragement for the first-time trip report poster. I enjoyed reading follow fodorites' trip reports so much and now it is payback time.

Ira, I have to thank you for recommending the B&B Peterson to us. It was very good value. We shared the complex with other people, but hardly hear any noise. The room was very clean. Didn't get a chance to meet the owner 'cause we were busy sightseeing Would stay there again.

Day 2: Today is the Eiffel tower and the right bank day. I hope our busy schedule doesn?t make everyone feel tensed. FYI, we did go with flow, with no rush. Just our endless curiosity and enthusiasm kept us going and going. We got to Eiffel tower at around 9:10 am. The first impression was: it is so big. It was hard to imagine that the tower was built more than a century ago in such a modern and sleek design. The line for both individuals and tourist groups were already pretty long. Thanks to the tickets we won from the Eiffel tower website, we were the first ones on the Eiffel tower. It felt like a royal treatment to leave the crowd behind, and had a quiet moment to appreciate my beloved city beneath, the beautiful seine, champ du mars, and many more. We also paid tribute to the great designer, Mr. Eiffel, and I got the chance to share some trivia knowledge I learned from the Eiffel sweepstakes with my husband. Later, we walked over to chaillot palace to view Eiffel tower through the fountain.

We took metro to the grand Arc de Triumphe. It is not an original design, since it is based on roman arch of Titus in Rome. But it is the largest and beautifully done, especially the four reliefs. It serves very well as a symbol of French patriotism. It was quite exhausting to climb up to the top of arc non-stopping, but the view of 12 avenues radiating from the center made it worthwhile. We then strolled down Champs Elysees to Place de Concorde. We passed the commercial parts where various shops and sidewalk cafes lined up. It was a beautiful day. People were sitting outside sipping coffee, watching the world passing by. They themselves became part of the scenery. The Peugeot showroom was really cool with creative concept cars. Later down the road, we enjoyed the less commercial part of the Champs better, with the tall chestnut tress lining up the broad avenue. All the trees had the perfect shapes, which made me wonder how much money spent on maintaining them. Paris has some many sides, which blends so smoothly into each other. Place de Concorde was very big and harmonious. We stood there, trying to imagine thousands of people lost their lives on the guillotine during the French revolution. Later, we took the metro to Pompidou center to get a different flavor of art. I just loved the modern look of the building and the colorful figures in the Stravinsky fountain. I had to admit that French were very artsy by nature. DH bailed out to take a break in the rest area, while I walked around the inside of Pompidou. I had to confess that that most modern art works were beyond me I appreciated the creativity and intensity in some of the works, but nothing really touched me deeply. We saw a lot of young people wondering around the Beaubourg area carrying shopping bags. They do clothes shopping on Saturday as wellJ.

Montmartre was our last stop. We took the funicular to Sacré-Coeur. The basilica looked grandly upon the whole Paris. I smiled when I remembered the comment of its resemblance to a big white cake. There were tourists everywhere around it so we didn?t stay long. Place du tertre was very busy, full of artists wanting to sketch your portraits and overpriced paintings. But never forget, it was here in Montmartre that many penniless great artists such as Renoir, Monet, Van Gogh and Picasso painted their masterpieces while living a bohemian life. Despite all the commercial scene we saw on Place du tertre, I still believe that there are artists living there pursuing their own style, independent of commercial influence. I totally fell in love with Montmartre when we turned into the quiet side streets. It was very charming, the narrow winding road and cute little old houses. There was a little liquor store totally covered by flowers and greens, as if from a fairy tale. There was a subtle and unique outerworldness in the atmosphere. Next time we go to montmarte, we will try to go early in the morning, free of the crowds.

As you can see, we had a long day. At night, we ate dinner at Le Petite Prince de Paris. It was a cozy little place on a small side street near metro Maubert. It was packed by locals. The food was great. We tried fois gras, escargots, a pork and a beef dish with a bottle of wine. Loved everything. It cost 69E for two of us.

While the right bank showed the splendor and royal side of Paris as the capital, the left bank was more intellectual and intimate. We felt more at home on the left bank.

cigalechanta

thanks wpeace. Good to hear the petit prince is still good. La cigale moved into an old favorite , where La Recamier was now called La cigale Recamier.

ira

ttt

strass

What a great trip report! I'm really enjoying it.

vvpeace

Day 3: Versailles & more museums. Versailles was huge and very sumptuous. The crowds inside overwhelmed us, reducing the pleasure of our visit. I was pick-pocketed inside the chateau. It was so crowed that I didn?t notice a thing. When I got away from the crowd, I found my handbag open, with my coin purse hanging outside (luckily I attached my coin purse to my handbag and DH hid all the paper money in his money belt so nothing was lost). It is easier to get pick pocketed when you are busy sightseeing and shooting photos in the crowd so BE CAREFUL. We went through the rooms, following the flow of other tourists. Unfortunately, the hall of mirrors was still under repair. We could just saw a small portion of it. We didn?t get the chance to tour the King?s Chamber, which required advance reservation. We finally got tired of crowds and decided to come back in the future with a guided tour. I am very interested in all the stories happening there. We were amazed by the size and landscape of the garden. The fountains were on with soothing classic music playing. We could see a rainbow formed through the fountain. We felt the weather was too warm for us to walk around the garden comfortably so we took the tram. It was a rip-off. We waited long time for the tram to come thus unwilling to get off ?cause we didn?t know how long we had to wait for the next one. I wouldn?t recommend taking tram unless you use it to get to the grand, petite trianons and Grand Canal. The ride was on a dirt road, not scenic. We left Versailles with the promise of coming back one day in the off-season.

After Versailles, DH went back to our hotel for some rest. I went to Museum Rodin and Museum D?orsay. Museum Rodin was fantastic, especially the garden. I rented the audioguide, which helped me understand each piece better. The garden was such a perfect setting for the sculptures, which were as if alive and breathing. It was such a peaceful and charming place. Musee D?orsay was amazing. Transformed from a train station, Orsay was a relatively new member to the museum families in Paris. But its early 20th century design matched well with its most important collections ? my beloved works by impressionists. I followed the tour in Rick Steves? book and got an audio guide to get more specifics about each painting. My heart beat fast when I first saw the paintings I?ve seen so many times on paper came to life in front of me. Now I was able to see each stroke and every detail. Time went by fast. Before I knew, I?ve already spent three hours in the museum. Later, we met some friends for dinner. After dinner, we walked down Champ du Mars to Eiffel tower. Champ du Mars was full of people, sitting down with friends and family to enjoy the beautiful night. Eiffel tower became mysterious at night, sparkling every hour to entice people. We went up the second level to see the lights of ?city of lights?. The view was very charming, with lights up everywhere to warm up the night.

? Day (on Day 10): Our flight back to US was in the afternoon so we had half day in the morning to explore Paris a little more. I got up early and went to Jardin du Luxembourg. The garden was so serene in the early morning, just a few people jogging and walking here and there. I liked it better than Versailles, ?cause it felt more intimate, with very elegant landscape and lines of statues. It was not a show-off place but somewhere you could really live. I sat on the bench, thinking ?Parisians are so blessed to have this piece of oasis in the city.?

It is hard not to love Paris. She is so diverse that everyone will for sure find something that touches his heart. Finally, I totally agree with Hemingway, ?If you?re lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a movable feast.?